Monday, July 20, 2009

Ragbrai --Red Oak to Greenfield 2

This was a set up in a farm lot along the way. It was a real chuckwagon and bikers were lined up forwhatever they were serving.

There are so many interesting shirts with cool graffics it would take another seoerate blog to show them all. One group is the Road Kill team and at every roadkill along the route they put their sticker on the carcass along with a string of beads.

About every 50th biker is playing music of some kind and there is every kind you can think of. i have been trying to hang close to this guy as much as possible because he has the best tunes and the best sound quality. Motown, Johnny Cash , Roy Orbison etc .

There are all sorts of novelty rigs to be seen but this is one of the noveltiest. It is 2 bikes on each side of a full bar set up in the middle. They have beer and hard liquor. On top they have a bunch of solar panels that power a very loud stereo system. The guys riding are some strong dudes becausethis is a heavy deal but also very popular with other riders.

Great ride today with a whole bunch of 2-3 minutes conversations with a bunch of very different riders. It is amazing what topics get talked about during these brief conversations. I have heard entire life stories from several--they can pack a lot of info in when they meet someone who is interested in them. I also find it fascinating the little snippets of conversation you hear as riders pass by--it is totally out of context and any conclusions I made are way off but boy is it fun to speculate.

One thing I saw today was a one armed rider and was very impressed with his balance etc but then I realized he was riding a fixed gear bike(only 1 gear) up hill and down. That is amazing--I was shocked and humbled by this biker. There is no way I can ever seriously bitch about hills-wind or whatever I bitch about again. I hope I see this man agin before this Ragbrai is over--I want to shake is hand (it would be his left one).

Another guy was riding a unicycle with a big fat tire and I could not keep up with him. He was working the uphills and down hills very effectively.

Tomorrow is a 75+ mile day with a lot more hills and Iam looking fotrward to the ride as well as seeing/meeting more riders.

About Me

Someone who has managed to survive making about every life/business mistake at least once (and sometimes 3-4 times).
Due to a very tolerant family, many good friends, more than my share of luck, and an over worked guardian angel I am extremely thankful to be able to try new stuff and learn/enjoy new things and the opportunity to make new mistakes.